Sarah Boslaugh TheArtsStl Oct 10, 2026 8/10

The Crying Game is a film of two halves: the first is set in Northern Ireland, the second in London.

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Joe Lipsett The Queer Gaze (Podcast) Sep 24, 2026 4/5

There's much more to this film than just the "trans twist." Jordan's film is deeply romantic and political, features fantastic performances by Richardson, Rea, and Davidson, who deserved so much more from Hollywood.

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Frank J. Avella The Contending Jul 28, 2026 A

Writer-director Jordan (Mona Lisa, The Miracle) crafted an intelligent, complex story that explores desire, allegiance, love and identity.

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Derek Smith Slant Magazine Jul 20, 2026

Neil Jordan’s landmark film is a strikingly humane and insightful examination of two troubled souls navigating the physical, social, and racial barriers that stand between them.

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Russell Rhodes Birmingham Mail Dec 14, 2023

The Crying Game could well be called the Best of Neil Jordan since the Irish director has gathered together everything that's worked in his more successful films.

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Lynden Barber Sydney Morning Herald Dec 14, 2023

Here is a film that takes viewers on an unpredictable journey, tackling an ambitious variety of themes and ideas without ever losing the plot.

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Mick LaSalle San Francisco Chronicle Jan 11, 2023 3/4

Irish director Neil Jordan's compelling new film is both a political thriller and a love story, uniting various sexual and political currents into one dreamlike narrative.

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Stephen Silver Tilt Magazine Dec 13, 2022 4/5

It’s hard to imagine a film in which the attitudes of today have changed how it plays, compared to the time when it came out (30th anniversary)

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Wesley Lovell Cinema Sight Nov 26, 2022 4/4

Finding oneself in the midst of chaos forms the perfect metaphor in The Crying Game, a film that explores race, identity, sexuality, and perception during a tumultuous time in Ireland.

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Andy Klein Los Angeles Reader Aug 12, 2022

More than anything, however, the film rests on the shoulders of Rea, who gives great dignity and humanity to perhaps the most passive film protagonist in recent memory.

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David Reddish Queerty Mar 20, 2022 4/4

As LGBTQ lovers of the movies, its important to see movies like this one, flaws and all, for that very reason. Watch it, and let the debate rage on.

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Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review Mar 18, 2022 4/4

The Crying Game searches for its characters' natures with a yearning that at once unveils yet retains mystery, not only in terms of sexual and political identity, but in the capacity for understanding and compassion.

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Alexander Ryll Gay Essential Sep 15, 2019

This movie is basically equivalent to the Paul McCartney and Wings song "Band on the Run" in that there are three change-ups, it keeps you guessing, and you never know quite where the movie is going land.

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PJ Nabarro Patrick Nabarro Nov 10, 2018 2/5

With 20 years' perspective, it really does seem an irretrievably ropey and dated melodrama, hamstrung by any number of strange elements.

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Vanessa Letts The Spectator Jul 24, 2018

Jordan takes risks in this film, but they're the wrong risks.

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David Ansen Newsweek Feb 8, 2018

A teasing, seductive intimacy immediately develops....The Crying Game is a very good movie indeed. It leaves one giddy.

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Eleanor Ringel Cater Saporta Report (Atlanta) Jul 7, 2017

There are more surprises in 20 minutes of this incredible Irish film than there are in 20 Hollywood pictures.

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Andrea Beach Common Sense Media Apr 1, 2015 4/5

Powerful drama has mature sexual themes, violence.

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Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times Mar 9, 2015

Suspenseful and emotionally complex, skillfully mixing politics with affairs of the heart, The Crying Game is something unexpected, a challenging new way to tell a very old story.

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Gary Thompson Philadelphia Daily News Mar 9, 2015 3.5/4

Here's a movie that is difficult to outguess, difficult even to describe. The Crying Game belongs to no particular genre, though it is an absorbing thriller and a memorably offbeat love story.

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